The present Invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Aglaonema plant, botanically known as Aglaonema hybrid, and hereinafter referred to by the name xe2x80x98Silver Moonxe2x80x99.
The new cultivar is a product of a planned and controlled breeding program conducted by the Inventor in Altha, Fla. The objective of the breeding program is to create compact and full Aglaonema cultivars with attractive leaf coloration and patterns.
The new cultivar originated from a self-pollination made by the Inventor of the Aglaonema hybrid xe2x80x98Silver Bayxe2x80x99, not patented. The cultivar Silver Moon was discovered and selected by the Inventor as a plant within the resulting progeny from the self-pollination in a controlled environment in Altha, Fla., in October, 1994.
Asexual propagation of the new cultivar by cuttings in Altha, Fla., since 1995, has shown that the unique features of this new Aglaonema plant are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations of asexual propagation.
The new Aglaonema has not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat with variations in environment such as temperature, light intensity, fertilizer rate, irrigation amount and frequency, and/or propagation procedures without, however, any variance in genotype.
The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be the unique characteristics of xe2x80x98Silver Moonxe2x80x99. These characteristics in combination distinguish xe2x80x98Silver Moonxe2x80x99 as a new and distinct cultivar:
1. Plants of the new Aglaonema are symmetrical, round in shape, relatively compact, full and dense, and are suitable for 15 to 25-cm containers.
2. Plants of the new Aglaonema are freely branching.
3. Plants of the new Aglaonema have relatively thick stems and short internodes.
4. Leaves of plants of the new Aglaonema are broad with obtuse bases and have short petioles.
5. Leaves of the new Aglaonema are bi-colored with a silver green central zone and a dark green marginal zone.
Plants of the new Aglaonema differ from plants of the parent, the cultivar Silver Bay, in the following characteristics:
1. Plants of the new Aglaonema are shorter and slightly more upright than plants of the cultivar Silver Bay.
2. Plants of the new Aglaonema have shorter internodes than plants of the cultivar Silver Bay.
3. Plants of the new Aglaonema have smaller leaves than plants of the cultivar Silver Bay. In addition, leaf bases of plants of the new Aglaonema are obtuse whereas leaf bases of plants of the cultivar Silver Bay are cuneate.
4. Plants of the new Aglaonema have shorter petioles than plants of the cultivar Silver Bay.
5. Leaves of plants of the new Aglaonema are bi-colored whereas leaves of plants of the cultivar Silver Bay are tri-colored.
6. Plants of the new Aglaonema have smaller spathes and spadices than plants of the cultivar Silver Bay.
Plants of the new Aglaonema can be compared to the Aglaonema cultivar Rhapsody in Green, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 8,975. However, in side-by-side comparisons conducted in Altha, Fla., plants of the new Aglaonema differ from plants of the cultivar Rhapsody in Green in the following characteristics:
1. Plants of the new Aglaonema are shorter, more rounded, more compact, and fuller than plants of the cultivar Rhapsody in Green.
2. Plants of the new Aglaonema have shorter internodes than plants of the cultivar Rhapsody in Green.
3. Plants of the new Aglaonema have thicker stems than plants of the cultivar Rhapsody in Green.
4. Plants of the new Aglaonema have broader leaves than plants of the cultivar Rhapsody in Green. In addition, leaf bases of plants of the new Aglaonema are obtuse whereas leaf bases of plants of the cultivar Rhapsody in Green are cuneate.
5. Leaves of plants of the new Aglaonema have shorter and thicker petioles than leaves of plants of the cultivar Rhapsody in Green.
6 Leaves of plants of the new Aglaonema have a more striking bi-colored contrast than leaves of plants of the cultivar Rhapsody in Green; that is, the central zone of leaves of the new Aglaonema is more silver gray and the marginal zone is darker green than leaves of the cultivar Rhapsody in Green.
Plants of the new Aglaonema can also be compared to the Aglaonema cultivar Deborah, disclosed in U.S. Plant Pat. No. 9,775. However, in side-by-side comparisons conducted in Altha, Fla., plants of the new Aglaonema differ from plants of the cultivar Deborah in the following characteristics:
1. Plants of the new Aglaonema are shorter, more rounded, more compact, and fuller than plants of the cultivar Deborah.
2. Plants of the new Aglaonema have shorter internodes than plants of the cultivar Deborah.
3. Plants of the new Aglaonema have green-colored stems whereas plants of the cultivar Deborah have white-colored stems.
4. Plants of the new Aglaonema have slightly shorter and broader leaves than plants of the cultivar Deborah.
5. Leaves of plants of the new Aglaonema have shorter petioles than leaves of plant of the cultivar Deborah. In addition, leaf petioles of plants of the new Aglaonema are green in color whereas leaf petioles of plants of the cultivar Deborah are white in color.
6. Leaves of plants of the new Aglaonema are bi-colored whereas leaves of plants of the cultivar Deborah are multicolor and mottled with a contrasting white midrib.